Snowflake
by stygian-apocalypse
Summary: [CONTAINS BOO SPOILERS] Leo's spirit is unsettled. Both Nico and Hazel can sense his death, but he's not in the Underworld. This is a story, which recounts the events from the end of the Giant War and how Leo's friends cope with his disappearance until he comes back with his one true love, Calypso and his best friend, Festus. [Percabeth, Jiper, Caleo, Frazel, Solangelo]
1. Percy

**Okay, so I've kinda read _The Blood Of Olympus _three times already and I loved it so much (except that there was a minimal amount of Percy and Annabeth, both as individuals and a couple, in it). But, I don't want to let go of Percy Jackson just yet, so I decided to write a story, which narrates the time period between the end of the Giant War and when Leo comes back to CHB. **

**I know the title's really weird (I mean, _Snowflake? _Really?) but it's important for upcoming stuff :)**

**DISCLAIMER: ****I'll only be doing this once the entire story. I do not own _Percy Jackson &amp; The Olympians_ and _The Heroes Of Olympus_, nor do I own the characters. All rights belong to Rick Riordan unless stated otherwise. The plot, however, is mine so if I see anyone with similar plots/events in the new stories, be prepared for an uber long message.**

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**CHAPTER ONE: PERCY**

Percy found himself on a wild goose chase with the Stolls. _Again. _And it'd barely been a week since their battle against Gaia.

He wasn't sure whether he should've felt glad that everything was back to normal, or whether he should've been wringing their necks.

He'd checked the stables, the forge, the dining pavilion, the Big House and even Zeus' Fist, before he finally found the brothers lounging in front of Thalia's pine tree, making small talk with Peleus. Without even bothering to resist the urge to smack himself in the forehead, Percy stormed up towards them just when they lifted their heads up.

"Hey, Perce," Travis greeted with a cheeky grin. "Is this the newest trend? It looks pretty good, I must admit. Maybe we should get the entire camp to look like this everyday."

When Percy had gone back to his cabin after his lunch date with Annabeth, he was expecting a warm shower. He was hoping to jam to Green Day, catch up with Hazel, Frank, Reyna, Dakota and his other Roman friends, and possibly meet up with Annabeth once again.

But when he'd turned the taps on, no water came out – at least, not water by itself. A liquid substance, which Percy suspected was a combination of water, glue and custard, sprayed out and instantly, he knew something was wrong. He also hadn't noticed the string attached to his towel when he stepped out of the shower, as the action of pulling on his towel brought down a huge bucket of glitter and feathers, which ended up sticking to his body. He'd spent a good twenty minutes scrubbing at his skin in a futile attempt to get rid of everything before storming out of Cabin Three.

Occasionally, Percy would join in with the brothers – and sometimes, Leo – to prank others because, why not? The reactions of their victims were absolutely priceless, especially those from the Aphrodite and Apollo cabins. But then, there were also those times where the brothers decided to work together alone and to Percy, that was never a good sign.

Percy was over dousing the brothers with water now. They'd pranked him so many times that they were used to being drenched with water and it barely made an effect. If anything, it allowed them the chance to strut around camp and show their bodies off to girls – and Travis had a girlfriend.

Connor's eyes lit up and he chuckled, agreeing with his older brother. "I'd pay to see Drew like this."

Percy glared at his two friends, pointing an angry finger at them. If he were a cartoon character, his face would've scrunched up like he'd smelt something foul and there'd be steam puffing out of his ears and nostrils. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the Stoll's would've paid two hundred drachmas to see that turned into an animation. "You guys are so dead. How in Hades do you even get this crap off?"

"Oh, we got the Hecate cabin to enchant a spell. You're stuck with that for another day."

"Say _what_?"

The three boys turned their heads around to find themselves staring at a fuming girl who had the same gunk as Percy all over her. Travis' eyes widened at the sight before him and muttered, "Oh, crap," under his breath. He then turned to Connor and raised an accusing finger at him. "You promised that you wouldn't do that to her. I clearly said anyone but my girlfriend."

"_Her _is still here, you know?" Katie spoke up.

Percy shared a look with Katie and brought his ballpoint pen out of his pocket. "What do you say, Katie? We give them a good beating?"

The brunette girl contemplated his suggestion for a moment before shrugging, "Why not? There's nothing better to do."

Travis protested, "Hey!" and scrambled up to his feet, offering a childish pout at his girlfriend. "What happened to loving me?"

"Yeah, maybe _after _you decide to get this junk of me."

"That wasn't even me! It was Connor!" He sent a half-hearted glare to his brother, but Percy didn't miss the mischievous smirk that tugged at his lips.

Just as Katie drew her sword out and Percy uncapped Riptide, Will came running up to them, waving his arms around frantically. He opened his mouth to speak, but not before shooting his two friends a funny look. "Nico visited the Underworld, and he has news."

Right. _Nico._

Percy was still rather baffled with the kid's confession, which had occurred three days after they'd defeated Gaia. He had told Nico about his plans with Annabeth – finishing high school, going to college and New Rome – and then, suddenly out of nowhere, _bam_. He goes, "Hey, Percy. You know, I used to like you all and now I see that you're cute, but not my type." While Percy had stood there, sinking in his confession, his girlfriend had offered Nico a high-five. And, the story didn't just end there. The son of Hades had simply grinned and went off to Will Solace, and didn't step foot out of the infirmary until this morning.

Surely, nobody else had ever confessed to another like that.

But, Percy could accept that. He had to admit that he did feel a little awkward whenever someone brought Nico up into the conversation, but he could accept that. He could accept Nico's sexuality, though he'd probably never forget the fact that the kid who was once obsessed with Mythomagic – the guy who could have been his _cousin_ – had a crush on him at one point of his life.

Nico visiting the Underworld was news to Percy. The pair had barely spoken to each other, due to the fact that only healers and siblings were allowed to visit the infirmary.

As the five demigods made their way to the Big House, Percy casually swung Riptide around by the hilt and grinned when he caught sight of Lacy from the Aphrodite cabin cooing over Coach Hedge's son. As feisty as the baby satyr was, Percy had to admit that Chuck was the cutest satyr he'd ever seen.

All the other senior counselors, and the centurions and praetors of Camp Jupiter were already gathered around the new edition of the ping-pong table, which was about three times its original size. Percy quickly took a seat between Jason and Annabeth, taking his girlfriend's hand and interlacing their fingers.

Most of his closest friends from both camps were here, and he couldn't have been happier. _If only Flaming Valdez was here_, he thought to himself. Jake Mason, the newly appointed counselor for the Hephaestus cabin sat opposite Percy, glumly. Even _Thalia _was here with the rest of the Hunters.

"Can we hurry?" Will inquired. "I have people to tend to back in the infirmary."

Nico didn't bother waiting for Chiron to start off and cut straight to the chase. "Leo's spirit is unbalanced."

Percy's ears perked up and he watched as Jason, Piper and Jake snapped their heads up. "Unbalanced?" Annabeth echoed, the middle of her forehead creasing – something that always occurred whenever she was thinking.

"Unbalanced…" Reyna said in thought as well.

"What do you mean?" Piper asked, gripping the table so hard that her knuckles her white and Percy was almost worried that she'd snap her edge of the table off. "Is he alive? Is he okay? Oh my gods, he's okay, right?"

Nico raised a hand, signaling silence and continued on. "I went back to the Underworld this afternoon to check if everything was okay and all, but Leo's not there."

The word Underworld sent shivers down Percy's spine, and even Annabeth squeezed his hand a little tighter. The horrors of Tartarus hadn't worn off of them and they still had nightmares. Percy knew that he'd been healed from the _arai_, but that wasn't enough to stop the memories from flooding his brain.

"He's dead," Nico stated, bluntly. "I can _feel _that he's dead. Hazel can, too, but he's not in the Underworld – not in Elysium, not in Isles of the Blessed, and not Fields of Asphodel."

Jason straightened his new glasses, and asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Nico sighed and scowled, as if he were swearing to himself mentally. "I don't know but one thing I _do _know, is that no one can be reborn so quickly. There's a waiting list."

"That means he's alive," Piper said. "If he's not there, then he's alive."

Percy watched as Hazel winced and squirmed, uncomfortably. "I don't really know about that, Piper…"

He wanted to be mad at Hazel and Frank, for caving in so easily to Leo. He wanted to angry with them for manipulating the rest of the four demigods. Sure, when Percy first met Leo, he'd been a little weirded out, but Leo was almost like the glue of the seven. Without him, it would've been bland and boring. Plus, the two of them shared two things in common: their silly sense of humour and Calypso.

_Calypso_.

"Maybe he's in Ogygia," Percy piped up, scratching the back of his head and almost winced when Annabeth turned to him.

"Oh- _what?_" Katie questioned.

"Oh-gee-gee-ya," he enunciated.

Annabeth shook her head. "No way. No one ever comes across Ogygia twice."

"But this is _Leo Valdez _we're talking about," Frank said. "He probably managed to cheat death, or the Fates led him to Ogygia again."

Even Percy thought that was ridiculous. Was Zeus really chill enough to allow a scrawny child of Hephaestus to visit Ogygia again? Surely, he would've smacked Leo out of the path with his wind powers.

He turned to Annabeth, silently asking her to say out loud what she had in mind. She sighed and pursed her lips, before shaking her head slightly. "I hate to admit it," she said, looking at Piper in particular. "But, I don't think we can do much about this. As you said, Frank, this is Leo. Everything he does is unexpected and spontaneous, so even if he comes crashing in here with Festus, it shouldn't be surprising, but we can't keep our hopes up."

Percy offered the Cherokee girl a small, sympathetic smile as she furiously wiped at her eyes with the sleeves of her shirt. He'd never been close to Leo, but he did resent how the guy had so easily sacrificed himself to save the world.

Piper had it the worst, with Jason coming in as a close second. They'd been the trio of the group who'd stuck with each other through thin and thick, especially Piper and Leo since they'd attended the Wilderness School together. Hazel had a connection with Leo too – some dude called Sammy, Percy recalled. Leo and Annabeth had probably been the best working duo aboard the _Argo II. _Annabeth had the brains and pointed out flaws, and Leo would build, construct and invent. Even _Frank_ was upset.

"Unfortunately, Octavian's in Elysium," Nico grumbled with a scowl, shooting a not-so-discreet glance at Will Solace, which Percy noticed.

Percy couldn't have cared less about Octavian; the guy had been nothing but a demanding, self-absorbed idiot, but Will was his Greek half-brother and that probably did affect him. If it did, Will didn't show it. He nodded, stiffly in acknowledgement – possibly because Percy had told him that Apollo was being punished, several days ago. To say that Will didn't like it would've been an understatement.

The usual bell rang out through all of Camp Half-Blood, signaling that it was time for dinner and Chiron cleared his throat. "Children, I think this is enough for today. As you all know, there's the celebration tonight. You don't want to miss dinner."

Right. Tonight was the extremely late celebration for the annual Fourth of July. Apparently, the camp hadn't celebrated while the others were out on their expedition.

The centaur dismissed the demigods and trailed along behind them to the dining pavilion. Percy offered some food to his father and took his seat at the Zeus table. Chiron completely ignored the fact that demigods with different parents sat together while Camp Jupiter was here, as long as nothing out of the ordinary occurred.

Their usual table consisted of Percy, Annabeth, Jason, Piper, Hazel, Frank, Nico, Thalia, Reyna, Dakota, Leila and Gwen, who'd decided to ditch college for a while, claiming she wanted to spend time with her friends who were on the brink of their deaths.

Not many people left the dining pavilion until later that night. By nine o'clock, most campers were pumped for the overdue Fourth of July celebration. Travis Stoll jumped up onto the middle of the Hermes table, which was coincidentally, the middle of the dining pavilion. He cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled, "Who's ready it par-_tay?!_"

As the rest of the campers cheered in response, Percy couldn't help but grin. He'd missed this.

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**A/N: Please let me know your opinions/critiques on this by reviewing! I hope you enjoyed it :) **


	2. Piper

**Thank you all so much for your wonderful feedback and reviews! You guys really made my day when I saw how many reviews and follows/favourites I gained :)**

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**CHAPTER TWO: PIPER **

Piper wasn't having as much of a blast as everyone else.

What could an unbalanced spirit _possibly mean? _That one question had been on her mind all evening. If Leo was to swoop into Camp Half-Blood with Festus, she wasn't sure whether she would wring his neck or squeeze the life out of him with a hug.

She'd never forget the first day she'd met Leo at the Wilderness School, when he had defended her from Dylan and the other girls who hated her. While he did cause more commotion and trouble for himself and Piper, she appreciated that. Leo might have acted clueless and absolutely stupid at times and he might've teased her over everything, but he always remembered Piper and he knew which boundaries not to push.

Piper regretted her actions. She'd been so reckless and rude to Leo; how did she just not realise that? She should've been there for Leo after he'd returned from Ogygia instead of Hazel. _She _was the best friend.

She made a vow right then and there, that if – no, _whenever_ Leo Valdez decided to return, she'd make more time for him. She'd appreciate his actions and gestures, and they'd tell each other everything. She'd sacrifice her time just like he sacrificed his life, but would that ever be enough?

Not once in her life, had Piper ever felt so guilty.

The only highlight of the night so far, was probably Annabeth and Travis staying away from Percy and Katie, respectively. The latter pair had been drenched in goo, and their Fourth of July celebration obviously wasn't going so well. Katie was fuming so much that vines appeared, surrounding her blanket.

Piper and Jason had never celebrated Fourth of July at Camp Half-Blood – they'd been on the _Argo II _for the actual holiday, anyway. Under normal circumstances, they both would've been absolutely pumped – probably not Connor Stoll pumped, but still, pumped. The news that Nico had announced in the Big House several hours earlier diminished their mood, instantaneously.

_Was Leo cursed? _

Jason, noticing her conflicted thoughts, rubbed Piper's knuckle with his thumb and pressed a kiss against her temple, comfortingly. "Forget it all for just one night," he murmured. "Just enjoy tonight."

She instantly relaxed in his arms, almost melting into a puddle of Piper McLean. Ever since that sort-of-date the other night where they'd kissed under the stars – for real, this time – Piper had seen her boyfriend in a different light, and it wasn't just the glasses. She loved him, and he loved her. The passion and caring between the two of them had almost skyrocketed, and there wasn't a single hour that they weren't with each other – with the exception of sleeping, of course.

The glasses did make him seem like a new and not-so-clichéd edition of Superman, though, and Piper liked that.

Piper smiled up at Jason, her kaleidoscope eyes shining brighter than ever before. She snuggled in closer to him, slinging a lazy arm around his waist. Looking around at everyone else, she took in the view of couples everywhere – some long-term relationships, some short-term and others flings – and the rustling of leaves in the background. The flames of the fire crackled in the night-light and lanterns were set out beside each blanket. If there weren't couples together, there'd be friendship and sibling groups cluttered together and scattered everywhere. Chiron smiled warmly at the large group of demigods celebrating not just an overdue American holiday, but also the celebration of another victory – _again_. Even Mr D. seemed to crack a smile.

A group of Apollo kids – Will, Austin and Kayla being the only three that Piper was familiar with – led the singing of campfire songs, grinning at each other. Other campers joined in, but harmonization was out of the question.

Annabeth and Percy were sat on the same picnic blanket on the right of Piper, but at least a foot away from each other. Piper giggled as she watched Annabeth wrinkle her nose and held her palm up like she was saying "Go away, Percy." Poor Katie was being treated like that, too. Hazel and Frank were cuddled up together despite the fact that they apparently, weren't supposed to do so. Nico slunk back in the shadows, as usual.

_This isn't right_, Piper thought. _We're not complete_.

She squeezed her hold on Jason a little tighter, and shook the wavering thought away from her mind. Like Jason had told her to, she was going to enjoy the night.

_"She looks so perfect standing there, in my American apparel underwear…" _

Piper's half-siblings went absolutely crazy, screaming at the top of their lungs, and she couldn't resist rolling her eyes. Her sisters adored Five Seconds Of Summer, and their Aussie accents and their 'badass, punk look'. Piper couldn't deny it – they _were _attractive. At least, they were over her own father… for now.

"Where did the band even _get _those lyrics from?" Jason asked.

She shrugged in response. "Who knows? Maybe they're sons of Apollo. I mean, the Luke guy _does _have blonde hair and blue eyes…"

Jason's smile froze and wavered the slightest bit. Piper clamped her teeth down onto her bottom lip and bit back an apology. She _knew _that Jason didn't particularly like what was happening with Apollo. They'd barely interacted and even Piper thought Zeus was out of line. Surely, the Fates would have foreseen Hera and Apollo's meddling. Piper had never been a fan of Hera's but she still didn't approve of the punishments the two gods had received: removal of their godly powers until they've proven that they can be trusted once again, and knowing Zeus, that would be next to never.

But then, Jason's dad was in fact, a total drama queen – more so than her own mother, Aphrodite. He probably could've won an Oscar award for an entire millennium, every year.

Piper shivered as the nightly breeze intensified slightly and Jason rubbed his hand up and down her arm as a poor attempt to warm her. Unfortunately, neither of them wore anything more than a shirt and shorts.

The acoustic version of an international boy band's song slowly diminished into a small buzz. Kayla stood up and cleared her throat, gaining everyone's attention.

This daughter of Apollo was one of _those _girls – one of those girls who everyone liked. While the camp was working of building the _Argo II, _Piper had the pleasure of making a few friends and Kayla had been one of them. She'd learnt that Kayla was a great singer, thrower and archer, but she was horrible with swords.

"Uh, hi," she said, standing up with a shy smile. "As you all know, the Apollo cabin teamed up this year with the Hephaestus cabin for the fireworks this year. And, let me tell you one thing: it'll be _so _much more awesome than last year's."

A chorus of _"Boo!"_s erupted from the Hermes campers, with Connor being the loudest, going, "Hey! That's offensive! At least we don't sing lame songs by the campfire like we're in a sappy movie."

Cue the chorus of _ooooohhhhh_'s.

Piper decided not to question what happened last year.

"This next and final song is dedicated to _all _of you – more specifically the six of the prophecy, Reyna, Nico and anyone else who's lost someone special," said Kayla, who ignored Connor's response.

"When we fought, we all lost someone whether it be someone we hated in camp or someone we loved, and it's because of this that we're all together right now."

_Apollo kids_, Piper thought with a small smile. _Always so poetic and having a way with words. _

"And for us, 'old kids'," she continued. "This is the second war we've fought in, and-"

"Yeah," Jake Mason popped up beside her and interrupted her speech. "We want to recognize every hero and every death- _oomph!_"

A few campers laughed as Kayla rammed her elbow into his ribs. Jake groaned and rubbed his chest with a wince. "Right," she said with a nervous laugh. "And, it's not just us Greeks who've fought twice. The Romans also fought at uh," she shot a glance at Jason who mouthed _Mt. Krios_ to her. "Oh, yeah!" Kayla snapped her fingers. "You guys fought at Mt. Krios, so we've decided to pay our tributes to _both _Greeks and Romans. So, please bow your heads down for a minute, to pay your respects."

The silence seemed deafening to Piper. She closed her eyes and ducked her head. She hadn't known many casualties but a death was still a death.

Kayla sat back down by her siblings and nodded at Will, who in turn, began to pluck the strings of his guitar. Piper felt like she was being taken down memory lane. This song was her all time favourite, and she recognized it within a heartbeat. The nostalgic, melodic tone of the introductory guitar was heaven to her ears.

Piper remembered the first time she'd asked her dad about her mum. She was seven and he'd just come home from another day of work. "Why don't I have a mum?" she'd inquired. He'd only reply with, "Not here, honey. Your mother's not here," and the heartbreak was clear in his eyes and voice.

When she'd first joined the Wilderness School, she'd thought Leo Valdez was a strange lunatic – and he really _was_. They'd stood up for themselves against Dylan and the bitchy girls who Piper had often wanted to gouge their eyes out with a fork. It was Piper and Leo, the two best friends, against the rest of the world. They stood together and they weren't alone.

And then, Jason came around. _Stupid Hera_, Piper thought with a mental scowl. But then again, if it weren't for Hera, she'd probably be dead at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, and she wouldn't have her own Superman. Many times, Jason Grace had told her, "I'm here for you Pipes. We'll make it through, I promise."

And, he kept his promises.

_"You're not alone, together we stand. I'll be by your side, you know I'll take your hand," _Will sang with perfect pitch.

At that lyric, Piper raised her right hand up to hold Jason's, whose arm had been draped around her shoulders. She interlaced their fingers and reached up to kiss the corner of his mouth.

Jason smiled, crookedly, and hummed along to the song, as did most other campers.

"We'll make it through," he murmured to her, rather than sing the last lyric as Will's strumming came to a stop. Piper didn't miss the discreet smile Will shot at someone in the crowd, but she did miss _who _it was.

The fireworks erupted barely a second later, and Annabeth momentarily seemed to forget Percy's state. He used this moment of ignorance against her and pulled his girlfriend in against him, despite her protests.

Piper could only grin at them and laugh, before looking up into the sky as the noise of everything else simmered down.

"I've never actually seen fireworks live before," Jason admitted.

She stared at him in shock before returning her gaze back to the pink and silver, exploding fireworks. "Really?"

He shook his head. "Nope. Fourth of July was literally just partying. That's the Roman way of celebrating, so it's pretty cool to experience it from the Greek side."

Piper was about to reply, but the ripple of murmurs in the crowd stopped her. Percy suddenly sobered up, his grin faltering and she exchanged a confused glance with Jason. The fireworks in the sky right at that moment depicted a huge African-American guy, whose muscles seemed to bulge out of his sleeves.

This wasn't an image depicted by fireworks, she realised. It was a holograph, which _seemed _like fireworks.

"Beckendorf," she heard Annabeth breathe out.

"Oh, hey," Piper said, tugging on Jason's hand. "It's the old Hephaestus cabin counselor. Died from an explosion, I think?"

A beautiful girl popped up – slim waist, blue eyes and black hair. _Silena Beauregard_, she thought. Piper had never known her but she _did _know that Drew talked trash about their deceased half-sister who had sided with the Titan's side. But, she turned out to be loyal in the end, so that's what counted, right?

Plus, kudos to her for denying the Rite of Passage.

Several other headshots came up and Piper heard Lee Fletcher, Luke Castellan Ethan Nakamura, Michael Yew and Zoe Nightshade. Holographs of Clarisse fighting off a drakon, Percy fighting against several monsters at once, Percy and Annabeth standing back to back and so many others appeared.

She pretended to understand what was going on.

An holograph of Percy and Annabeth kissing underwater was displayed and Piper resisted the urge to say, _"Awww." _It was pretty hard, since the two of them were so red that they'd probably put beetroots to shame.

Piper looked away for one second to brush a loose strand of hair behind her ear, and the moment she looked up, she found herself staring back at herself in her pink snowboarding jacket with Jason's arms around her waist when she'd fallen off the Grand Canyon.

_How in Hades had they gotten _that _image? _

"Oh, _gods_," Piper moaned in embarrassment, tearing her eyes away.

Jason chuckled. "Good times, eh?"

She watched as images of the _Argo II _and the battles at Greece and Camp Half-Blood floated in the atmosphere. Every time Leo was shown, it felt like a stab in the heart. But, Piper managed to force out a soft laugh when an image of Octavian stuffing himself into an onager. It was rude, yes, she knew that, but she couldn't help it. She'd heard the story from Nico, who'd been there to witness it, and she still thought the deceased augur's actions were a little more than ridiculous.

The final image – an image of all the Greeks and Romans together – slowly dissipated and the usual fireworks exploded into the night sky before ending with a bang.

Jason pressed his lips against Piper's temple and said, "I love you so much, Piper."

She smiled for real this time. "I love you, too."

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**A/N: Jiper fluff! Yay or nay? ****In your reviews, it'd be great if you said what you want to see happening in this story or what you think is going to happen, as well as who's POV you'd like for the next chapter.**


	3. Nico

**I'M SO SORRY IT TOOK MORE THAN A WEEK TO UPDATE but I guess I have a legitimate excuse - kind of? I broke my wrist during a hockey game, oops. I swear, I'll try my best to write quickly! **

**This was originally supposed to be an Annabeth chapter but then I was like NICO DI ANGELO BC WHY NOT **

**And apparently, Rick stated that Will was Nico's age (14) and then other sources say he's 18 or 19; I THOUGHT HE WAS LIKE PERCY'S AGE, AROUND 16 OR 17. Does anyone know his actual age?**

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**CHAPTER THREE: NICO **

Nico didn't know how he felt.

He wasn't sure whether he should've felt flattered, glad or completely weirded out with the way Will Solace was paying so much attention to him. For the three days Nico had spent in the hospital, he'd defied almost everything he was told to do, only for the son of Apollo to smirk smugly and say, "Doctor's orders – no point in disobeying."

Even when he'd been released, Will said, "Don't you even dare _think _about doing anything remotely close to shadow-travelling. I don't care if it's only from your cabin to the dining pavilion; you still need more rest."

But, Nico thought he had a legitimate reason to visit the Underworld. He was the Ghost King – of course, he would visit end up visiting anyway, but there was something about Leo Valdez's soul, which unnerved him. What unsettled him even more, was that he had no clue what was going on.

Both Nico and Hazel had known for sure that Leo was dead – he'd pretty much been catapulted by Octavian, the makeshift onager projectile. Then, three days later, it went _boom_. The two half-siblings were confused, and they spent the night awake until two in the morning, attempting to figure out what had happened, but to no avail. It frustrated Nico greatly. He'd never been close to Leo – in fact, he found him rather annoying but he grew a respect for the guy. He was close to being an outsider on the _Argo II _with the others, and Nico knew how that felt.

Hazel was an entirely different story. This whole Sammy Valdez and Leo Valdez story still seemed a little bizarre to Nico.

When Nico visited the Underworld, he ran into Octavian. He felt like laughing in his face and saying, "What's up, sucker?" but then realised, that would've only attracted more embarrassment towards himself than the deceased augur, especially since this was Elysium of all places.

He still didn't understand why his father had even thought about placing Octavian in such a significant precinct of the Underworld, but he decided to let it be.

He also ran into Phoebe, with her crazy ginger hairdo and tough girl look. The pair of them had quite literally, had a glaring contest from twenty metres away. There were dozens of dead Hunters and Amazons, and for a second, Nico feared that Thalia might've shared the same fate. Then, he remembered that Thalia had spent the past few days at Camp.

After what felt like an eternity to Nico, he gave up looking for Leo. He'd asked Silena Beauregard, Luke Castellan and even Octavian, and they'd all given the same response. "He was here for about four days and we don't know where he went."

Well, Octavian said, "I THROTTLED HIS NECK AND HE DISAPPEARED THE NEXT DAY!"

That made Nico want to throttle _his _neck, but there was no point of doing that to a ghost.

Needless to say, Will was pretty pissed off when he found Nico materializing in front of the Poseidon cabin. At least, he didn't say anything until the day after the Fourth of July fireworks.

Chiron had apparently, finally been able to convince Will to take a day off, since he'd been in the infirmary for almost an entire week, treating everyone's injuries. Everyone agreed that he'd already so much, and he needed a well-deserved break.

Out of all the things, he could've chosen to do, Will decided to spend the day playing basketball and shooting arrows.

Nico knew for a fact that Will would be annoyed at him for disobeying "doctor's orders", but he walked by the basketball courts anyway. He attempted to slink back into the shadows like he usually did but he felt himself weakening again – not so much as he had when Gaia was on the verge of awakening, but enough for him to feel it automatically.

Will noticed instantly.

Just to Nico's luck – or not so much –, most of the guys on court were shirtless.

_Stupid Apollo boys and their basketball aiming obsessions. _

"You didn't listen," Will said.

"Sorry," Nico replied without really meaning it. "Duty calls."

"And, duty calls are more important than doctor's orders?" Will questioned with a raised eyebrow, folding his arms across his chest. His _glorious _chest.

"Yes. You can't boss me around."

Nico almost smacked himself. He sounded like his six-year-old self – or _any _six-year-old who made an attempt to protest against an elder.

He caught Piper's eye behind Will. She was sitting in the bleachers, watching Jason play with the Apollo kids and she tucked a strand of her behind her ear. Piper sent a polite smile towards Nico, to which he returned with a nod.

The corner of Will's lips tugged up into a smirk at Nico's childish words. "Whatever," he said, "I'll let it go this time, and _only _because I swore to Chiron that I wouldn't do anything doctorly today. If I catch you doing anything shadow or Underworld related in the next two weeks, you're back in the infirmary."

He couldn't be _that _sneaky, could he?

Nico watched as Piper eyed the two of them with narrowed eyes – she knew something was up. The son of Hades shrugged nonchalantly and proceeded towards the sword-fighting arena, which was his original, planned destination.

"Sure thing, doc."

He spotted Connor Stoll strolling out of the camp store with his hands in his pockets, which seemed to be bulging with goods before shrinking down to a normal size. A moment later, Travis appeared, smirking. Nico made sure to steer out of the way because seeing the two of them here simply screamed out _fishy _at the moment.

Katie was going to murder them for sure.

When Nico entered the training arena, he instantly spotted Thalia and Percy sparring together. He secretly hoped that Thalia would whoop his ass, simply for his own entertainment and because it'd be cool to see Percy lose for once. The two of them were neck to neck anyway.

The other big spar, which took place, was Clarisse and Malcolm, against two guys – funny pairing. The other two were no match compared to the son of Athena and daughter of Ares.

A tap on Nico's shoulder brought him out of his daze, and he looked back to find a girl around his age with brown hair and purple eyes.

He'd never seen her in his life.

"Wanna spar?" she asked, offering a smile. "I'm Yolanda, daughter of Hecate."

"Nico, son of Hades."

"I know."

"I'm ready when you're ready."

Nico whipped out his Stygian iron sword just in time as Yolanda pulled out her shield and sword. It'd been a while since he'd sparred with another demigod, and he thought he was a little rusty. The fact that he still felt weak from the shadow travelling gave him a further disadvantage.

It would've been extremely embarrassing if he lost to the daughter of Hecate.

The girl waved her blade around in figure eights multiple times before crouching down slightly and charging towards Nico. He could see the uncertainty in her eyes, doubting her own movements. This was good. It was always good for the opponent to be unsure of their actions.

Their swords clashed together and Nico was able to push her back with every ounce of strength in his body. They blocked, they thrusted, they parried and they dodged. Yolanda was an open book; she never kept her left side fully protected and Nico knew that he could've won within a small amount of time but he decided to drag to swordfight out for longer. He needed the stamina and he didn't want to feel weak.

Nico noticed another thing: Yolanda thought too much, and he would've thought she were a daughter of Athena if she hadn't introduced herself. Nico noticed her moment of hesitation and he lunged forward, swinging his sword in a foreswing, which was enough to send her sprawling onto the ground in surprise.

"Yeah!" he heard Percy call out. "Go Nico!"

Nico smirked in triumph, though the smug look only lasted for about two seconds. Yolanda had raised her shield up and the sun reflected off the metal blade, and Nico staggered back, clumsily.

This time, Yolanda made the strike, slicing the fabric of Nico's shirt. He hissed and cursed himself, mentally. He forgot his armour – just how stupid was he?

The tip of Yolanda's sword had left a large tear in his black shirt and had across the right side of his chest, recklessly. The pain was nothing compared to what he'd been through in Tartarus, but he still felt the sting of the graze – it was an in-the-moment kind of pain, which took him by surprise. She gasped and dropped her sword to the ground, instantly lifting her hands up to her mouth as she stared at Nico in horror. "Oh my gods," she said. "I'm _so _sorry! I didn't mean to, I swear!"

Unbeknownst to her, Nico raised his sword back up along with his opponent's sword. He gripped the weapons tightly and held them at the base of her neck and at her midsection. "Dead," he announced. "You don't ever say sorry to an opponent."

"Right," she answered as her cheeks flushed red. "Um, got it. Still, sorry and thanks for the spar. I needed that."

"Hey, Death Breath!" Nico rolled his eyes at the stupid nickname, as Thalia waved him over towards herself and Percy. "Up for a good old spar between the Big Three?"

"Where's Jason?"

"Right here," the guy replied. He had his arm around Piper and a silly grin plastered on his face. "I think I'll sit back on this one and watch – Greek spar between the Big Three, I guess."

Nico was already pushing his limit. He'd left the infirmary, exhausted and he could barely walk. He'd gotten better but he could feel the weariness settling upon him, but he refused to step back down.

While Percy was distracted, Nico exchanged a glance with Thalia and the pair charged at the son of Poseidon who pulled Riptide out quickly. He ducked both weapons and retaliated with a strike towards Thalia, which was followed with a backswing towards Nico, who jumped out of the way quickly.

Thalia was crackling with electricity. Each time Nico's sword made contact with her spear, he felt electricity running through his veins. As of right now, it barely affected but he and Percy both knew just how rejuvenated Thalia could get during a good spar.

When Nico snuck up behind her while she sparred with Percy, she managed to duck out of the way but not before he sliced off a good two inches of her spiky hair. Black strands fell loosely onto the training grounds and she spun around, shooting him a glare to which he returned with a smug smirk.

Aegis popped out, and Nico's eyes almost bulged at the sight of Medusa's hideous face. He hadn't seen _that _in a while.

Thalia charged and Nico felt himself shuddering and limbs going crazy as she zapped him. His hair stuck up slightly and he glared at her with narrowed eyes. "Oohhhhh," Percy spoke from beside them.

"That's how you're gonna play, Grace?" Nico said. He didn't mind being doused by water – Uncle Poseidon was cool like that, and kind of knew what fun and family meant, but Nico absolutely _despised _being electrocuted. It infuriated him, and it irritated him to no end.

Nico had the sudden urge to open up another fissure just like he had in South Carolina. Instead, he stabbed his sword at the ground and several skeletal minions formed around him, wielding their own weapons. "Charge," he commanded.

A large wave of cold ocean water splashed onto Thalia and Nico, and swept away his skeletons. Percy held Riptide in his hand, tightly, waiting for someone to make the first move. As expected, it was Thalia, who released a battle cry and Nico quickly followed suit. His teeth were chattering – he cursed himself not putting armour on, _again_ – and his clothes stuck to his skin, uncomfortably.

He summoned another gang of skeletal minions, who fought off Percy, while he, himself, sparred with Thalia. As violent and weird as it was, Nico missed having these Big Three "bonding times".

Suddenly, a warm wave of water came over him and the familiar feeling of being zapped was back. His body convulsed for a few seconds, before he collapsed onto knees, stabbing angrily at the ground with his weapon.

When he woke up, he found himself back in the infirmary and this time he had Percy and Thalia as his neighbours. Will stood in front of Nico's bed with his hands on his hips and scowled at the three cousins.

"Are you three _ever _going to stop with these fights?"

They glanced at each other and Nico had to bite back a smile. "Nope."

Will sighed in defeat. "You two are free to go," he pointed to Percy and Thalia, and then he turned to Nico. "_You_, on the other hand, are staying for another night.

Stupid son of Apollo.


End file.
